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A review by roadtripreader
A Wizard of Earthsea by Ursula K. Le Guin
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
To light a candle - you must cast a shadow. - Master Hand
As I read I wished I could experience each chapter over again for the first time as I was reading it for the first time - how wild is that? To be hit with Nostalgia before the book is even a day old memory in my mind is a new experience. Better late than never. My foray into the world of Earthsea and Ursula Le Guin is bringing a tear to my eye. Not because it's sad or tragic - it is in a very subtle way. But because it is just that good
What's in a name? So much. Too much. Faefolk will not part with it nor share it lightly and here in the world of the Earthsea, a rite of passage is to be given your true name into adulthood.
Themes in this coming of age tale include pride , arrogance, envy, rage, hate, vengeance and perceptions: of weakness and strength. Desire for praise, Desire for acknowledgement and overall desire for acclaim - Ged's frame of reference is challenged and altered. Self-awareness becomes a power in its own right in this book.
And finally, Balance must be sown in every aspect of wizardry and magery.
Characters:A Scene or Summary
How to train your mage: lots of walking and sailing and not much talking. It's easy to forget that his journey begins when he is 15, not because he acts older or is too powerful to be defined by age but because being a teenager is inconsequential he has his name, his true name and he has wizardry and that is enough to allow him navigation into the world.
Ged is destined for something awesome or terrible, maybe both.
Favorite/Curious/Unique Scene:
⚜️Duny becomes a war-wizard, Sparrowhawk- out of need and a 100 Karg hoarders encased in spooky mist and receives his true name.
⚜️Oops boasting his way into accidental necromancy. Now choose between Re Albi and Roke😥
⚜️Ged finds a true friendship in Vetch
⚜️Master Hand and the tolk speech does little to dissaude his pride but Master Name's speech seems to impact Ged.
⚜️The otak-hoeg chooses Ged as a place of warmth, safety and rest.
Favorite/Curious/Unique Quotes:
🖤 “You want to work spells.You’ve drawn too much water from that well. Wait. Manhood is patience. Mastery is nine times patience.” (Oigon - every bit the sensei)
🖤 Sparrowhawk: “Do clothes make
Jasper: “No, though I have heard that manners make the man ...” (I have a feeling about Jasper)
🖤 “They say, Sparrowhawk, that a man favored by a wild beast is a man to whom the Old Powers of stone and spring will speak in human voice.”” (Vetch on Ged's favor and power)
Favorite/Curious/Unique Concepts:
■ Isle of the Wise. Masters of Roke, Nine.
■Six Hundred Runes of Hardic, Old Speech
■ Weatherworkers, witchwives, Seamasters
🎵The Creation of Éa / Deed of the Young King
■Festival of Sunreturn
GR Rating: 4⭐
CAWPILE: 8.5
StoryGraph Challenge: 1800 Books by 2025
Challenge Prompt: 150 Fantasy Books by 2025
As I read I wished I could experience each chapter over again for the first time as I was reading it for the first time - how wild is that? To be hit with Nostalgia before the book is even a day old memory in my mind is a new experience. Better late than never. My foray into the world of Earthsea and Ursula Le Guin is bringing a tear to my eye. Not because it's sad or tragic - it is in a very subtle way. But because it is just that good
What's in a name? So much. Too much. Faefolk will not part with it nor share it lightly and here in the world of the Earthsea, a rite of passage is to be given your true name into adulthood.
Themes in this coming of age tale include pride , arrogance, envy, rage, hate, vengeance and perceptions: of weakness and strength. Desire for praise, Desire for acknowledgement and overall desire for acclaim - Ged's frame of reference is challenged and altered. Self-awareness becomes a power in its own right in this book.
And finally, Balance must be sown in every aspect of wizardry and magery.
Characters:A Scene or Summary
How to train your mage: lots of walking and sailing and not much talking. It's easy to forget that his journey begins when he is 15, not because he acts older or is too powerful to be defined by age but because being a teenager is inconsequential he has his name, his true name and he has wizardry and that is enough to allow him navigation into the world.
Ged is destined for something awesome or terrible, maybe both.
Favorite/Curious/Unique Scene:
⚜️Duny becomes a war-wizard, Sparrowhawk- out of need and a 100 Karg hoarders encased in spooky mist and receives his true name.
⚜️Oops boasting his way into accidental necromancy. Now choose between Re Albi and Roke😥
⚜️Ged finds a true friendship in Vetch
⚜️Master Hand and the tolk speech does little to dissaude his pride but Master Name's speech seems to impact Ged.
⚜️The otak-hoeg chooses Ged as a place of warmth, safety and rest.
Favorite/Curious/Unique Quotes:
🖤 “You want to work spells.You’ve drawn too much water from that well. Wait. Manhood is patience. Mastery is nine times patience.” (Oigon - every bit the sensei)
🖤 Sparrowhawk: “Do clothes make
Jasper: “No, though I have heard that manners make the man ...” (I have a feeling about Jasper)
🖤 “They say, Sparrowhawk, that a man favored by a wild beast is a man to whom the Old Powers of stone and spring will speak in human voice.”” (Vetch on Ged's favor and power)
Favorite/Curious/Unique Concepts:
■ Isle of the Wise. Masters of Roke, Nine.
■Six Hundred Runes of Hardic, Old Speech
■ Weatherworkers, witchwives, Seamasters
🎵The Creation of Éa / Deed of the Young King
■Festival of Sunreturn
GR Rating: 4⭐
CAWPILE: 8.5
StoryGraph Challenge: 1800 Books by 2025
Challenge Prompt: 150 Fantasy Books by 2025